Innovating for the Patient: Interview with Alcimed

ISSUE #64 – Innovation beyond the product or the pill is more important than ever to address Singapore’s emerging health needs. Carole Real, Business Development Manager, and Yann Ferrisse, Managing Director, Alcimed, share their views.

Can you tell us about Alcimed and how it started in the healthcare industry?

Alcimed is a consulting firm specialised in innovation and development of new markets, with 200 people across nine offices in seven countries, and 20 years of experience in life sciences. Our purpose is to explore and develop uncharted territories around new technologies and market innovations.

The healthcare industry is a fascinating field that requires continuous innovation. Alcimed has always been involved in helping our clients in deciphering key technologies or business models for the future, since its creation in 1993 as Alcimed Biotechnologies, which was an uncharted territory at the time. Alcimed has established itself when it comes to exploring and developing uncharted territories, be it in accompanying our clients in deciphering new key technologies for the future, reinventing a business model around digitalisation of patient pathways (connected care, smart health, etc) or reinventing its business model to reach more patients.

The healthcare industry is a fascinating field that requires continuous innovation

How would you describe the innovation environment in healthcare in Singapore?

Singapore is known worldwide has a very innovative place, attracting many international company’s R&D centres, building infrastructure at the cutting edge of technology, and participating in the education of future engineers. Singapore has to address the challenges of its future healthcare situation such as an ageing population, an increased chronic disease burden, a need to manage future growth in healthcare manpower, an increase in healthcare costs and spending, etc. Digital heath and smart technologies are solutions to address such challenges and existing constraints.

These solutions would lead to better diagnostic tools, enhanced treatments for patients, devices that improve quality of life of the patients and connect them better to their doctors and diseases. Singapore is becoming a pioneer in this area, and is fast-moving towards becoming the world’s first smart nation, by proposing the right technologies and facilitating the connection between healthcare stakeholders.

Singapore has to address the challenges of its future healthcare situation such as an ageing population, an increased chronic disease burden, a need to manage future growth in healthcare manpower, an increase in healthcare costs and spending, etc.

In this environment, how would you suggest companies approach innovation in healthcare?

Innovation in healthcare is key for the pharmaceutical industry, with every company looking into where and how they can innovate in order to increase their reach as well as their image of a contributor to overall healthcare issues. The challenge therefore lies in the how? Proposing services beyond the product or the pill to enhance patients’ knowledge in their diseases, increase patients’ adherence to their treatments, improve the communication between healthcare professionals and their patients, implementing disease management programmes through innovative technologies, and digitalising their offers and business models are some of the expectations one can have from the pharmaceutical industry to approach innovation in healthcare.

The Smart Health initiative launched by the French Chamber of Commerce in Singapore is another response to this trend around bringing innovation to healthcare. The French community of players is willing to work hand in hand with Singapore’s authorities to demonstrate its added value in bringing innovative solutions to the healthcare environment, aligned with Singapore’s main goals targeting the ageing population and chronic diseases in oncology and diabetes.